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Decision set to try to save southern New England lobsters

PORTLAND, Maine (AP) — Interstate fishing regulators are set to decide on new fishing restrictions to help rebuild the population of lobsters in southern New England.

The New England lobster fishery is based largely in Maine, where fishing managers say catch has soared to new heights in recent years. But the population has collapsed off of Connecticut, Rhode Island and southern Massachusetts as waters have warmed in those areas.

The Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission is considering a host of new restrictions about lobster fishing in southern New England at a meeting on Tuesday. The commission voted in May to try to slow the decline of lobsters with new management measures.

Restrictions could include changes to legal harvesting size, among others. The commission says it wants to boost egg production by reducing lobster harvest.

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